The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
aaronrenn.substack.com
The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
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Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#2The article makes an interesting case for the possibility that South Korea's military dictatorship intentionally created low-fertility policies that can't be reversed. But reading the description of what's going on, I can't help be reminded of John B. Calhoun's work on the "behavioral sink" [1], where he basically created a utopia where rats had everything they needed for survival, they multiplied exponentially, but once they reached a certain critical population density, they ceased to be interested in reproduction and instead exhibited a bunch of socially pathological behaviors. Within 3 generations, no further rats were born.
South Korea is a densely populated country, as is Japan (another country often cited as having an aging, low-fertility population). And people tend to move out of dense metropolises like Manhattan or SF to have children. Maybe there's something inborn to humans that causes us to seek space and resources, and if those are not available, to not have kids?
[1] https://vocal.media/geeks/the-true-history-behind-the-secret...
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#3The article makes an interesting case for the possibility that South Korea's military dictatorship intentionally created low-fertility policies that can't be reversed. But reading the description of what's going on, I can't help be reminded of John B. Calhoun's work on the "behavioral sink" [1], where he basically created a utopia where rats had everything they needed for survival, they multiplied exponentially, but…
Lack a source but for many this will be the first generation in a long time where today's new parents will be unable to provide an equal or better quality of life to their children - especially in big urban centers which have seen the full effects of stratification. Space and resources are big weights in a "QoL" function.
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#4The article makes an interesting case for the possibility that South Korea's military dictatorship intentionally created low-fertility policies that can't be reversed. But reading the description of what's going on, I can't help be reminded of John B. Calhoun's work on the "behavioral sink" [1], where he basically created a utopia where rats had everything they needed for survival, they multiplied exponentially, but…
I don’t believe its density as much as costs and impact on lifestyle.
Make daycare, child health services and great schools universally available and cheap/free. Make it feasible and safe to get kids around dense cities quickly (excellent transit options). I suspect under these circumstances more people would be open to the idea of children.
As it stands today, having children places an unbearably high social and financial strain on people. Suburbs have been just one solution to the problem but there are others.
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#5Perhaps the issue is related to the devaluation of "non-productive" aspects of the family associated with late Western-style capitalism.
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#6The article makes an interesting case for the possibility that South Korea's military dictatorship intentionally created low-fertility policies that can't be reversed. But reading the description of what's going on, I can't help be reminded of John B. Calhoun's work on the "behavioral sink" [1], where he basically created a utopia where rats had everything they needed for survival, they multiplied exponentially, but…
I don’t believe its density as much as costs and impact on lifestyle. Make daycare, child health services and great schools universally available and cheap/free. Make it feasible and safe to get kids around dense cities quickly (excellent transit options). I suspect under these circumstances more people would be open to the idea of children. As it stands today, having children places an unbearably high social and fin…
> Make daycare, child health services and great schools universally available and cheap/free.
That is probably a good idea but there are places where daycare is free and there's no evidence it makes a difference.
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#7I'm surprised the article doesn't mention North Korea more. The DPRK is probably the most collectivist (least individualistic) large society on the planet, so much so that it terrifies bona fide liberals. I'm sure the intense political polarization of the divided Peninsula has contributed to hyper-charging individualism in the South. You don't want to be like the enemy.
FWIW, DPRK birth rate is about 1.9, still below replacement but more than double the ROK, and much higher than PRC or Japan.
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#8Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don’t believe its density as much as costs and impact on lifestyle. Make daycare, child health services and great schools universally available and cheap/free. Make it feasible and safe to get kids around dense cities quickly (excellent transit options). I suspect under these circumstances more people would be open to the idea of children. As it stands today, having children places an unbearably high social and fin…
> Make daycare, child health services and great schools universally available and cheap/free. That is probably a good idea but there are places where daycare is free and there's no evidence it makes a difference.
The childcare is free, but what about the rent?
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#9I'm surprised the article doesn't mention North Korea more. The DPRK is probably the most collectivist (least individualistic) large society on the planet, so much so that it terrifies bona fide liberals. I'm sure the intense political polarization of the divided Peninsula has contributed to hyper-charging individualism in the South. You don't want to be like the enemy. FWIW, DPRK birth rate is about 1.9, still below…
Just for future readers being "liberal" does not necessarily mean that one is "collectivist".
The OP, like many others, confuses governmental, economic, and philosophical ideals so that they can make a political point - one that does not contain much in the way of substance.
In the way of examples, neoliberalism [1] comes to mind.
Re: The Toxic Reality of a Post-Familial Society
#10I'm surprised the article doesn't mention North Korea more. The DPRK is probably the most collectivist (least individualistic) large society on the planet, so much so that it terrifies bona fide liberals. I'm sure the intense political polarization of the divided Peninsula has contributed to hyper-charging individualism in the South. You don't want to be like the enemy. FWIW, DPRK birth rate is about 1.9, still below…
Just for future readers being "liberal" does not necessarily mean that one is "collectivist". The OP, like many others, confuses governmental, economic, and philosophical ideals so that they can make a political point - one that does not contain much in the way of substance. In the way of examples, neoliberalism [1] comes to mind. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoliberalism
I mean philosophically liberal in the original meaning of the term. In that sense, it is tightly linked with individualism.
This has nothing to do with current American politics.